The Kansas City Chiefs emerged from round one with a new defensive nucleus. Two first-round investments were made, including a leap up to No. 6 overall, and the haul included the draft's top cornerback (Mansoor Delane of LSU) and defensive tackle (Peter Woods of Clemson).
After a night to rethink their draft board, the Chiefs came into the second round with the 40th selection at their disposal to further bolster the roster and general manager Brett Veach decided to invest even more on that side of the ball with the selection of R Mason Thomas, a pass rusher out of Oklahoma.
Thomas, a 6-2, 249. lb. pass rusher, spent his first two years at Oklahoma dealing with high-ankle sprains to both ankles in back-to-back seasons, which limited him to a combined 19 games and 1.5 sacks as a younger player. When he finally got healthy and got his shot as a junior in 2024, he made up for lost time fast with 9 sacks and 12.5 tackles for loss, which earned him All-SEC honors. Last year, Thomas dealt with more injury concerns while remaining productive when he was on the field. He had 6.5 sacks and was named first-team All-SEC and a second-team All-American, even as a quad injury cut things short.
Thomas is going to be given every opportunity to contribute since the Chiefs' depth chart at defensive end is thinner than anyone would like to see coming into the draft. Charles Omenihu left in free agency. Mike Danna was released. Edge was already a major need even before those moves, because George Karlaftis is the only sure thing. Thomas now gives the Chiefs another young option to pair with Ashton Gillotte to begin to build a stronger array of pass-rushing weapons.
After making the latest pick, the Chiefs now have four more draft choices awaiting them, although they are not scheduled to make another choice on day two after trading their third-round pick (No. 74 overall) to the Browns in the Delane deal. Here are the Chiefs' remaining draft picks:
- Round 4, No. 109 overall
- Round 5, No. 169 overall
- Round 5, No. 176 overall
- Round 6, No. 210 overall